Believe it or not I've never picked up a John Wayne disc until I recently got Stagecoach-Criterion Collection. I know True Grit is one of the biggies but can you guys reccomend any other top Wayne discs one should have for essential viewing...thanks

My Top 3:

Rio Bravo
Man Who Shot Liberty Vance
The Searchers

My Top 3

Red River
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
The Searchers

If I were to venture outside the established top 3, I wouldn't waste much time before getting to The Quiet Man.

Not a classic by any means, but I've always enjoyed El Dorado, James Caan's regrettable 'Chinaman' routine aside. Among those not mentioned so far, Donovan's Reef, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon and Long Voyage Home are worth checking out.

Some of his later stuff is seriously underrated:

Mark Rydell's The Cowboys has one of his best performances:

http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/28213...e-edition-the/

And he's amazing in Don Siegel's The Shootist. And you're right about True Grit; it's essential:

http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/28173...ition/?___rd=1



Those are must-haves for the Duke.

Sands of Iwo Jima, a very good WWII movie.

Great movie, lousy picture quality on the Republic DVD.

Hondo is lean and mean.

I've always liked McLintock! even though there's a lot of silliness in it -- I think it's the best (only?) comic role I've seen of his (I don't care for Donovan's Reef at all).

I love the chemistry he has with Patricia Neal in In Harm's Way but don't care for the rest of the movie. I don't really have an excuse for not yet watching Operation Pacific where he also costarred with Neal, as it's sitting beside me unopened as I type.

Good ideas for DVDTalk's upcoming Historical (War/Western/etc) Challenge!

My favorite has to be: Big Jake

Chisum! John Chisuuuum!

That one that doesn't star a giant buffoon.

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance isn't ideal if you're looking for a lot of John Wayne, since he takes a back seat to James Stewart in that one. I would recommend She Wore a Yellow Ribbon instead. Bear in mind I love both movies.

Another vote here for "The Searchers" and "The Cowboys" ...

some others to watch-

Allegheny Uprising

Fort Apache

The Fighting Kentuckian

For his first role in a major film, I'd recommend "The Big Trail" (1930), also it was one of the first "widescreen" movies.

Did John Wayne ever not play a cowboy or a soldier?

Branigan and McQ are two late-career movies where he played a cop or detective. Then of course there's The Quiet Man.

The Conqueror...but make sure your really drunk first, then it's a riot!!!!

(1) The Searchers
(2) Red River
(3) The Quiet Man (needs a good Criterion-type remastering, though)

All three are both superb movies and fine acting from Duke in his prime. Growing up with Wayne's later films in the sixties & early seventies (War Wagon, Undefeated, Rio Lobo, The Alamo, Green Berets), I never realized that he could actually act until getting to see his earlier films...especially when directed by a firm hand that Wayne respected (John Ford, Howard Hawks, etc.).

Hard to keep it to just three. I would also think that the following are "essential" Wayne, even if they don't make the top three:

The "Cavalry Trilogy": Fort Apache, Rio Grande, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon.
Rio Bravo.
Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.
Hondo.
McClintock.
Sands of Iwo Jima.
The Shootist (great final performance by Duke).

So many others...They Were Expendable & some of the other WWII films...even minor westerns such as "Dakota" or "Big Jake" are lots of fun.

True Grit is an 'essential' performance by Wayne, but IMHO, Glen Campbell almost single-handedly ruins the movie. Hard to fathom casting a novice pop singer as a lead character trying to hold his own against the likes of Wayne, Robert Duvall, Dennis Hopper, Strother Martin, and a host of character actors. Campbell's stiff, awkward attempt is enough to make anyone "Grit" his teeth trying to get past him. Also, the movie actually skimps a little on some of the book's most exciting scenes (the snake pit, for instance). It'll be interesting to see what the Coen Brothers do with the remake starring Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, and (I think) Josh Brolin.